Duran Duran Sign Publishing Deal With Warner Chappell Ahead of New Album

Warner Chappell Music has signed a global publishing agreement with British new wave rock icons Duran Duran, the publisher announced today (May 21).

Under the agreement, Warner Chappell will administer the majority of the group's catalog from 1986 onward, as well as current and future compositions -- including an album slated for release in fall 2020. The deal covers albums like Notorious, Duran Duran (The Wedding Album), Astronaut, Red Carpet Massacre and most recent album Paper Gods in 2015, encompassing such hits as "Notorious," "All She Wants Is," "Ordinary World" and "Come Undone."

"Duran Duran redefined the modern pop landscape in the ‘80s, and over the past four decades, they’ve remained endlessly creative, continuing to evolve and reinvent themselves,” Warner Chappell Music co-chair/COO Carianne Marshall and co-chair/CEO Guy Moot said in a joint statement. “As brilliant songwriters and visual pioneers, the band’s distinctive, original approach has continued to influence successive generations of artists, even as they have continued to raise the bar."

The band -- which consists of singer Simon Le Bon, keyboardist Nick Rhodes, bassist John Taylor and drummer Roger Taylor -- has sold more than 100 million records worldwide, landing 30 top 20 singles in the U.K. along with 21 hits on the Billboard Hot 100. Its self-titled debut album was released in 1981, the same year that MTV launched, helping their fusion of music, art, tech, and fashion reach across the globe.

Coronavirus restrictions notwithstanding, a press release states that their upcoming studio album will be accompanied by a "major world tour."

"We worked with both Carianne and Guy before they joined Warner Chappell, and we have long admired the kind of creative approach they bring to publishing," said Le Bon, speaking on behalf of the band. "We are very much looking forward to this new partnership and to a successful future together for our catalogue.”